Stone Age Timeline
3,500,000 years ago Foot prints have been found in east Africa that are over three-and-a-half million years old. They show creatures we call 'hominids' can walk on two legs. This allows the front feet to develop into hands and to use tools. The posh name for these hominids is 'Australopithecus' which means 'southern apes'. 2,500,000 years ago Earliest stone tools found in Ethiopia show these hominids knew how to scrape the skin off their food ... but that didn't mean they had weapons to kill it. So experts think they probably stole dead meat from wild animals. (Drop some sweets on the classroom floor and see that many of today's hominids still have this dirty, theiving habit!) 2,500,000 - 1,500,000 years ago Early homonids are changing into more 'modern' human beings and are using stone tools. They are called 'handy humans' (Homo habilis is the posh name). 1,800,000 years ago The clever humans builld their first houses - in Tanzania. Not too comfortable but at least there's no rent too pay or neighbours don't park their BMW next door to make you jealous. 1,600,000 years ago Hominids are now using cleverer tools. These 'upright humans' (Homo erectus) are spreading from Africa. But archeaologists have also found 'handy humans' who were still living at this time. The finders gave them weird nick-names like 'Twiggy', 'George' and 'Cinderella'. (Not to be confused with your school goalie who has the same nick-name because he's always late for the ball.) 1,000,000 years ago Possibly the first use of fire. And now there's another type of hominid - the one that will become you in a million years' time: 'wise man' (or Homo sapiens), who has a bigger brain. 450,000 years ago Homo sapiens is spreading around the world and eating cooked food. 200,000 - 130,000 years ago Neanderthals appear in Europe. These are not Homo sapiens but hominids that are almost as clever and are bigger and more tough, but not tough enough to survive and will end up extinct. 150,000 years ago European humans in the Ice Age start to use caves to shelter from the cold. One tricky problem is that bears like the caves too, and there must have been a few bedroom battles for the cosiest caves! 128,000 years ago Sea levels rise as the Ice Age ends. Britain is cut off from Europe and in the warmer weather hippos start to live in the Thames. They're not there now so don't bother looking. But did some prehistoric creatures survive in the deep waters of Loch Ness? 70,000 - 30,000 years ago The new Ice Age starts and Homo sapiens sapiens (wise-wise man) moves into Europe. Early humans discover Australia and move in: this is bad news for kangaroos. Neanderthals still live in Spain but are about to disappear, leaving Homo sapiens sapiens to take over the world. 25,000 - 14,000 years ago The Ice Age returns for the last time. Mabey the Neanderthals saw it coming and decided to become extinct rather than lie through another 10,000 freezing years. 12,000 - 10,000 BC End of the last Ice Age and the start of the Middle Stone Age - Mesolithic Period. Humans are making pottery and building mud-brick houses. In America, beavers the size of donkeys are hunted untill extinct. 4000 BC Start of the New Stone Age - the 'Neolithic' period. 2000 BC Bronze is now in use so the Bronze Age has begun. 700 - 500 BC Early Iron Age, so now you can iron your clothes. All this and much more in Terry Deary's Savage Stone Age